Page 9 of Unexpected

I stayed behind Luke as Chris stumbled back down the hall and paused at the end. I positioned myself even farther behind Luke—not hard when he was twice my size—so I was completely out of Chris’s view. I thought he may argue again, but ultimately, he turned and left. I sighed with relief as he disappeared around the corner.

Once he was out of sight, Luke turned back to me.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine. I had it handled,” I bit out. The concern on his face and in his words made me feel small, which made me defensive.

“I’m sure you did,” he scoffed and rolled his eyes as his body relaxed.

“Don’t say it like that.”

“Seriously, Hazel?”

I fixed my top, pulling it up so less of my cleavage was showing, and yanked my purse over my shoulder. “Yes, seriously. I had it handled. He’s a prick, and I know how to handle them.”

“What were you going to do?” he asked, but I wasn’t prepared for the question. I stuttered over my response because, in truth, I had no idea what I was planning on doing, but the smug look on his face fueled my need to win.

“I would’ve slapped his hands away and then told him if he touched me again, I’d chop his fingers off. Then I would have kneed him in the balls for good measure.”

Luke nodded and chuckled. He scrubbed his mouth to wipe away his lopsided smile and leaned back against the wall on the opposite side of the hallway. “Well, I guess you did have it handled then.”

“I did.”

“But I’m not the kind of guy to just walk away when I see a woman being harassed by a man. Ever,” he said. I swallowed down the thickness in my throat, unable to respond. The gravity of his words and the sincerity in which he said them made me feel uneasy and exposed.

He saw what was happening and inserted himself because he knew it was wrong. But the added “ever” at the end and the conviction in which he said it made me think he wasn’t just talking about the hallway incident.

“That’s very admirable. I…” The words get stuck, and I’m still not sure what I want to say. “I appreciate your help whether I had it under control or not. Okay?”

“Okay,” he relented. I thought he would take the hint that he was dismissed, but he continued to lean against the wall and watch me.

For a moment or two, we stood there, staring at each other with only the sound of the music and the short width of the hallway between us. Only once did his eyes break from mine to sweep down my body.My reaction to his perusal couldn’t be helped. It felt like my entire body was a live wire.

“Hazelllllll!” Emmy called as she ran down the hallway. Only a six-year-old could make my two-syllable name eight syllables long.

“Here,” she exclaimed as she shoved a headband in my hands. “It’s for you since you didn’t dress up.”

I saw the amused expression on Luke’s face—the lopsided smile back in place—before I looked at the headband in my hands. It was black with a white, fuzzy, sparkly halo attached to it.

Emmy noticed my hesitation and pulled me down to her as she ripped the headband from my hands. “You have to wear it!” she ordered.

“Okay, okay. I’ll wear it,” I conceded because I had no say in the matter.

“Do you know why I got this one for you?” she asked, and before I had a chance to respond, she added, “Because you’re my angel.”

She placed the headband on my head, and I felt my heart constrict in my chest. If the kid wanted me to wear the damn headband, then I’d wear the damn headband.

“Thank you, Princess Emmy,” I said, and she wrapped her arms around me in the tightest hug. I caught a glimpse of Luke’s facial expression, and it wasn’t as hard as usual. His eyes were softer and his broad shoulders relaxed.

Feeling too much in the moment, I asked Emmy, “Well, what about Luke? He’s not dressed up either, so maybe he needs a headband, too.”

He scowled down at me as I grinned up at him.

“Mommy said Luke is moody and that I should leave him alone.” She shrugged. I barked out a laugh, and Emmy smiled, although she didn’t really understand the hilarity of her comment.

“Your mommy’s right. Luke is a little moody sometimes,” I agreed.

“Hey now,” he finally spoke up. “I’m not moody.”

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